polly 0 mozz was my favorite when I was active in the NJ scene. That was 35 years ago. I never see it here in OH. We use Grande whole milk mozz loaves that we shred 2 parts mozz to 1 part Grande provolone. We put DOP Romano that we shred from wheels, into our sauce instead of salt. We also top the finished pie with freshly grated DOP parmigiano reggiano cheese that I also buy in wheel form. RD is 40 miles away and I only get out there once every couple months for a few things I can't get delivered from GFS. I am satified with my cheese combo. It is about ones personal taste. Let your taste buds guide you. We all have been wowed by a certain pizzeria(s) and that memory is what guides us to our final product. For instance, real neopolitan pizza doesn't turn me on. I have had some of the best. It doesn't have that kick that I grew up with in the NY style pie. Walter

Walter, that sounds like a killer recipe. Pecorino can be salty & on occasion I have had salt issues when I has salted my sauce and then add too much Pecorino Romano. The Parmegiano Reggiano is a wonderful cheese but sometimes I end up paying 20 a pound! Can you taste the difference with it?

Walter, that sounds like a killer recipe. Pecorino can be salty & on occasion I have had salt issues when I has salted my sauce and then add too much Pecorino Romano. The Parmegiano Reggiano is a wonderful cheese but sometimes I end up paying 20 a pound! Can you taste the difference with it?

communist: We use 7/11 tomatoes. To me they have the tang that I like and no added salt, spices, or tomato paste. The romamo, a bit of fresh crushed garlic, EVOO, and a tad of oregano, makes up our sauce. The parmegiano really adds a great finishing touch IMO when the pie comes out of the oven. That and some fresh basil on the finished pie gets people saying good things. Still to me, the crust is the focus and the other stuff compliments but doesn't over power. This is why my favorite pie is a regular old sauce and cheese. All the fancy topping IMO take away from the essence of what pizza was for me growing up. I get the Parm Reg for about $10/lb from RD. It is on sale this month for about $7/lb. I am going to buy about 30 pounds this weekend. We sell it to people for $15/lb and they save 5-10/lb and also sell the romano below normal cost. This offsets our cost quite a bit. If you lived around here I would take you to RD to load up. Walter

Scott, I just moved up to Minneapolis, so I should have pretty good access to a variety of cheeses. I agree on the low rating of grande - I would even lowball it with a 2-3 out of 10 given the price I paid for what I got; it essentially had zero flavor. I feel like I would've accomplished the same pizza with a $3 bag of mozz from walmart. So disappointing.

I think I might just head to costco and buy a variety of block mozz's and experiment with those / adding romano and whatnot to them to see what happens.

I'm not blown away by any mozzarella, but one I do buy a lot lately is Dragone, which is sold in a local Walmart. It is made by cheese giant Saputo, also the maker of Frigo cheeses. At about $3.50 a pound it's fairly economical, my current choice for aged, whole milk mozzarella.

I'm not blown away by any mozzarella, but one I do buy a lot lately is Dragone, which is sold in a local Walmart. It is made by cheese giant Saputo, also the maker of Frigo cheeses. At about $3.50 a pound it's fairly economical, my current choice for aged, whole milk mozzarella.

RD sells Saputo block whole milk mozzarella. I like it as well, but I figured I would give this NY Blend a shot.

I tried Frigo a few months back, and it acted very strangely. It may have been because it was about a month past the expiration date, but, at the same time, it wasn't showing any signs of aging- no softness, no discoloration, no bubbles.

the Dragone I buy is always in date, the shelf at Walmart is usually cleaned out of it by the end of the week, and if you don't get it you have to wait for them to restore. Like I said, I'm not blown away by it, but it has a decent taste, melts well, and is a solid cheese so it grates well. I hate soft, mushy mozzarella which is a PIA to grate. Another thing I like, it's not overly salty as many mozzarellas are. If the only taste from mozz is salt, that's not for me.

It's whole milk & part skim mozzarella. I was tempted to grab the 3 cheese...mozzarella/provolone/cheddar. Next time :-)

I used to be hesitant to put cheddar on pizza, for the longest time I thought only mozzarella was used. However recently I found a little bit of smoked gouda/sharp cheddar underneath the mozzarella gives it that something extra, just a little more flavor without overpowering my pies. What do you guys think, is adding that blend heresy in the pizza community?

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If Tetris has taught me anything, itís that errors pile up and accomplishments disappear.

I often blend cheeses, cheddar not so much, but provolone, fontina/fontinella type cheeses,and kasseri are often included. Cheddar tends to oil off quite a bit and makes the pizza greasy, same can be said for any of the harder Italian cheeses. I don't care for overly sharp cheeses, asiago and sharp provolone tend to be overpowering.

Scott, I have only had the Saputo block from RD which I shredded....it was very good. The Frigo from Shoprite was also good, but was very soft and difficult to shred...almost too soft. I'm going to be using the RD NY blend for my 1st party at the end of the month.

Hi all, I have been reading this post with interest, thanks for starting - Calabro cheese is not available in San Diego (at least I can't find it) - I'll be going up to LA this week and I wanted to try some. I was wondering if someone that has used it can tell me what they think works best. Which one from the list below should I try, or is it best to do a mix.

Also, Chaze215, when you try the NY blend from RD please let me know how it is, I did not even know that I had an RD a few miles from my house - I'm hoping that store will be a source of great pizza cheese, Hard to find anything I love here in San Diego.

Hi, just trying again asking for some help picking the best Calabro cheese. I emailed the company and they directed me to several shop locations in LA that carry their cheese. I don't get up to LA often so I would appreciate some help.

Which one from the list below should I try, or is it best to do a mix.

Norcoscia, you will find different opinions on this, but I feel pretty strongly that fresh mozzarella has no place on NY style pizza. On also should avoid part skim, imo. The cheese you want is 'Whole Milk Mozzarella.' Below is a photo of it in a 1 lb. block, but, if you're getting it from a distributor, it will most likely be a 6-7 lb. loaf. The labeling on the loaf looks similar, though.

Definitely call ahead. I've called a few places who supposedly carried Calabro mozzarella only to find that they didn't have the aged version, only the fresh.

All of the stores are pretty much in the same general area so I will definitely call ahead - driving around in LA does not make for a fun day.

I'm excited to try a new cheese - I think cheese can make all the difference on a pie. I have used some whole milk that was just too oily and had to be mixed with a low fat version to get the best finished product (IMHO) so that is why I was asking about the mix.

Thanks again for taking the time to help - now if I could just find a stick of that pepperoni I used to get in the 70's

It's whole milk & part skim mozzarella. I was tempted to grab the 3 cheese...mozzarella/provolone/cheddar. Next time :-)

Chaz,

I have tried both the NY blend and the three cheese blend from RD and like them both very much. Although putting cheddar on a NY pizza might be considered a no-no by NY style purists . My next purchase, however will be a loaf - I've read from quite a few members that if you want great tasting cheese on your pizza, you've got to grate it yourself. Hope this helps you

I have tried both the NY blend and the three cheese blend from RD and like them both very much. Although putting cheddar on a NY pizza might be considered a no-no by NY style purists . My next purchase, however will be a loaf - I've read from quite a few members that if you want great tasting cheese on your pizza, you've got to grate it yourself. Hope this helps you

Mary Ann

Like I've said recently, I had the Saputo loaf and shredded it myself and was very good. I'm going to give the NY blend a go and see how it compares. I agree with not putting cheddar on a ny style pie, but as a big fan of cheese, I'm gonna have to try it Shhhhhhhh don't tell Scott. Stay tuned...